Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to the field of information handling system input and output devices, and more particularly to information handling system multi-handed hybrid interface devices.
Description of the Related Art
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Information handling systems generally process information provided by an end user through an input device, such as a keyboard, and provide information to the end user through an output device, such as display. In some instances, information handling systems integrate input/output (I/O) devices with a system housing. For example, portable information handling systems often accept inputs through integrated keyboards or touchscreens, such as physical keyboards integrated in convertible housings or virtual keyboards presented at a touchscreen of a planar tablet housing. Information handling systems also interface through peripheral I/O devices that are separate from the system housing, with communication supported through cables or wireless signals, such as wireless local area networks (WLAN) or wireless personal area networks (WPAN). Generally, desktop and other non-portable information handling systems are designed to interact with external peripheral devices, however, end users also appreciate the availability of external peripherals with portable information handling systems since portable system integrated I/O devices tend to have a smaller size. For example, end users will often use external peripherals in an office environment so that information is presented at multiple displays, including external peripheral flat panel displays that have a larger viewing area.
Touchscreen displays provide a convenient input device for end users by presenting graphical user interfaces that accept end user inputs as touches. In tablet information handling system configurations, a touchscreen display keyboard is the primary input device if a physical keyboard peripheral is not available. Although touchscreen keyboard displays provide a convenient interface for portable systems, end users often have difficulty typing at a touchscreen since no physical feedback is provided for key inputs. As a result, end users tend to use a physical keyboard peripheral to perform input-intensive activities. One difficulty with the use of peripheral keyboards is that applications often include settings and configurations that adjust how external keyboard inputs are applied. Often applications combine inputs from external keyboards with touch inputs or mouse inputs to perform application functions. For instance, a drawing application might accept graphical inputs made by a pen or mouse and apply different colors to the graphical inputs based on selection made in a menu. Similarly, a CAD application might rotate views based on keyed inputs, touch inputs or mouse inputs. Over time, end users are essentially trained by the applications to use various input combinations for performing functions, however, the input combinations tend to have inefficient hand movements. For example, an end user will type a selection to open and label a window, mouse a selection for a color to input at the window and then interactively draw on a touchscreen to create a graphic design. Instead of adapting to an end user and the end user's environment, the applications tend to force the end user to adapt to their environment.